The Political Economy of Early Child Development and Family Literacy

By Askin Taner, OLC Public Policy Analyst

By integrating expertise from the fields of adult literacy, and early child development (ECD), family literacy programs enhance the ability of parents to support their pre-school children as they develop preliteracy skills.¹ In this issue of the newsletter, the OLC explores and highlights issues related to family literacy. Below, we start by discussing some of the political and economic implications.

Why should we care about ECD, and by extension, family literacy? There have been important new developments in our understanding of the significance of early childhood and the effects on health, learning, and behaviour in later stages of life.

Recent molecular and cellular research regarding the impact of early childhood environment on biological processes in adulthood now provide us with much more than statistical evidence. Studies on brain 'plasticity', the stress system, and serotonin metabolism provide clear accounts of the causal mechanisms involved. Today, we know a good deal about how experience-based brain and biological development in the early years differentiates neuron functions, and how it influences the development of sensing pathways, neuron connections and pathways in the brain. These translate into direct influences on health, learning, literacy, and indeed behaviour throughout the life cycle. This recent body of research in natural sciences gives a substantial boost to economic and political arguments for ECD initiatives.

Traditionally, arguments for supporting ECD initiatives have been based upon notions of social justice. These are politically based ideas, and they can be traced back to both left and right wing ideologies such as socialism, and the Christian democratic tradition. The economic argument for supporting ECD initiatives is based on the notion of efficient allocation of resources. By addressing issues of social justice while simultaneously promoting economic productivity, a policy framework for ECD carries the potential to generate support from across the political spectrum. These developments have led many leading international experts to make policy recommendations, to governments across the world, which emphasize the crucial need to teach parents how to provide an enriching environment for their children.

Most politicians, policy makers and even many academics subscribe to the conventional wisdom that formal educational institutions play a central role in the production of skills required by the modern economy. According to Nobel Laureate economist James Heckman, however, the return on investment (ROI) from money spent on ECD is much greater for both individuals and society as a whole than money spent on formal education.² The ROI ratio in formal education is about three to one in contrast to at least eight to one for ECD programs, excluding the effects of early child development on physical and mental health in adult life.³ Using findings from studies carried out in the United States (US) including such longitudinal projects as the Abecedarian Project, the Chicago Child Parent Center Project, and the Perry Preschool Program, Heckman provides specific examples of his argument regarding ROI from ECD.⁴ From a political perspective, Heckman's recent research on the benefits of investing in children from disadvantaged sections of society is particularly important. In the US, his findings have started drawing attention from centres of power across the political spectrum.⁵

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